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SCENE: FILO, MELTY and NAOFUMI stand on the street where FILOFIAL QUEEN left them. FILO breaks out of the chains of light that surround her, and jumps to her feet, shaking off her limbs, looking around with grim alertness. NAOFUMI remains unconscious. FILO turns to MELTY.
FILO: Can you stand?
MELTY: Not yet.
FILO picks up MELTY into a princess carry, and grabs NAOFUMI by one leg, putting it under her shoulder. She heads back towards the square, dragging NAOFUMI behind her, her lips pursed in frustration. MELTY looks around in confusion.
MELTY: Where are you going? The town is in the other direction.
FILO: I am getting my rifles before some other monster drops down from the sky.
MELTY: Shouldn't you…pick up Naofumi?
NAOFUMI is dragged behind them, his head making regular clangs as it bounces off various debris on the street. FILO glances back at him, then shrugs.
FILO: Whatever. His defense is high enough he wouldn't even feel it.
MELTY looks at FILO in concern.
MELTY: Are you alright?
FILO stretches out one of her hands, squeezing her fingers into a tight fist, her muscles roiling under her skin, then relaxing them.
FILO: Physically? I feel great, stronger than ever. I want to go fight something, but you babies won't survive without me, so I'll wait.
MELTY: I meant in general. She put some kind of compulsion on you, didn't she?
FILO: Yeah, well. I can't punch that. But you are smart, right? You'll figure it out, if it starts to cause problems.
MELTY: I am not sure if I can. I've never seen that type of magic - it could take decades.
FILO grunts in acknowledgement. They soon reach the square, and with a twist and a clap of air currents, four of FILO's rifles snap back to her.
NAOFUMI groans as he wakes up from the noise, and looks at the others.
FILO: Slept well?
NAOFUMI: She…left?
FILO turns around to NAOFUMI, still holding MELTY in her hands.
FILO: Yeah, no thanks to you.
MELTY: I don't think it was his choice to start rolling on the ground screaming.
FILO: It's the second time he's slept through the fight! Next time that happens, I'll punch him.
NAOFUMI gets up off the ground, dusting himself off.
NAOFUMI: I'll take that into consideration.
FILO twists her neck, cracking it.
FILO: You better. I am so strong right now, I might take your head off.
NAOFUMI: Let's go. We still have a pogrom to deal with.
FILO: First, I am getting Fredalia.
FILO heads towards the building CONSTANCE was sent flying into. NAOFUMI looks conflicted as he follows.
NAOFUMI: People are dying in town. Ones who are still alive.
MELTY: I must agree, Filo. We simply don't have the time - we will have to do it later.
FILO: Who is going to stop me, mister sleepyhead and miss noodle arms? I am not leaving my friend to be eaten by monsters.
FILO inclines her head.
FILO: Also, I think she might be still alive. I can hear her heartbeat now that things have calmed down.
NAOFUMI: What?!
NAOFUMI and MELTY look baffled. FILO hands off MELTY to NAOFUMI, then approaches the house, cracking her knuckles. She hops into the remains of the house, and begins digging around, soon finding CONSTANCE seemingly pinned down by a fallen beam. CONSTANCE looks dazed, and coughs at the dust FILO throws into the air as she works. CONSTANCE's voice is weak.
FILO: Are you alive there?
CONSTANCE: Yeah. Just couldn't get out.
FILO lifts the massive beam with one hand, and helps CONSTANCE out of the house. NAOFUMI comes around to meet her.
NAOFUMI: It's so good to see you in one piece. I thought you died.
MELTY: How can you walk? I thought for sure your bones would have been paste after a hit like that.
CONSTANCE reaches below her collar, and takes out a broken pendant, showing it to MELTY. Recognition flashes in NAOFUMI's eyes.
CONSTANCE: Invincibility amulet - we took it off that slaver we killed. It was still good for one hit, and what a hit it was.
MELTY whistles.
MELTY: That would explain it. A rare trinket.
NAOFUMI: You don't have one?
MELTY: No. They seriously interfere with magic when worn.
CONSTANCE dusts herself off.
CONSTANCE: Thank you for not leaving me here. I heard some of your fight, but couldn't extricate myself from underneath the rubble.
MELTY: Come on, we can talk on the way. We need to get to town quickly.
CONSTANCE nods. They head towards town.
SCENE: In the town. A MOB of humans with various weapons is trying to break into a barricaded house. They are being beaten off from the inside by a human WOMAN armed with a pitchfork alongside several DEMIHUMANS.
WOMAN: You feck off from here! Go back to the barricades and kill monsters!
MAN: Wait, wait! Stop!
A MAN, wearing GUARD clothes, emerges from the MOB, standing between the MOB and the house.
MAN: This is my 'ma! Let me talk to her.
The MOB moves some distance back. The MAN turns to the house.
MAN: 'Ma! Open the doors and throw those demis out!
WOMAN: I ain't opening nuthin.
MAN: They killed our count!
WOMAN: Not these ones!
MAN: All of them are guilty!
WOMAN: Mark, I'll whip you myself! All of them guilty - these ones pulled me back when that monster almost bit 'me head off. I ain't letting nothing happen to them.
MAN: We are coming in ma, those demis should hang!
WOMAN: Oh ye better come in, then I'll wring your neck! To think I raised such a rat - you are no son of mine!
SCENE: NAOFUMI, MELTY and CONSTANCE ride into town on top of FILO. MELTY is still pale, but manages to mostly sit on her own, supported by NAOFUMI and CONSTANCE on both sides. As they cross the bridge, they see MYNE, commanding a small contingent of terrified GUARDS. All around the town, there are sounds of the pogrom: windows breaking, shouting, stomping of crowds. MYNE turns towards them, and her face shifts into a worried scowl.
MYNE: Melty, what did these savages do to you?!
MELTY: Calm down, I did it to myself.
MELTY preens, despite her weak state.
MELTY: I managed to cast Ertag's Sanguine Containment! In combat, no less!
MYNE's face goes white.
MYNE: What? Melty, are you
suicidal?
MELTY: Jealous? Bet you couldn't manage it!
MYNE: I wouldn't
want to manage it because
I don't have a death wish!
NAOFUMI gives MELTY a curious look.
MELTY: Bah. I could have kept it under control even if things went wrong. Probably.
MYNE shakes her head.
MYNE: We don't have time for this. Your demihumans have killed the count, and the idiot guards violated
my fucking orders and started a pogrom.
MELTY:
What?!
MELTY throws a glance at CONSTANCE. CONSTANCE shrugs.
CONSTANCE: Legendary weapons do not confer discipline on the people they train.
MYNE: I've been trying to corral what few are still subordinate enough to stop it, to no avail. I
should have burned them all, but I think you would have been cross with me if I did that, dear sister.
MELTY: Keep doing that. Filo, could you take us up? I want to see the situation from up high.
FILO flaps her wings, and flies on top of a building, stalking to the edge of the street. Below them, they see an enormous MOB OF POGROMISTS, carrying various weapons, storming down the street and crowding against a large warehouse with boarded windows. Chanting, clang of weapons, stomping of feet, shouting, and cries of pain all blend together into a cacophony of noise.
MELTY grabs her head in her hands, looking over the crowd in dismay.
MELTY: Dear lord, where do we even start with this?
FILO: Eh, just a big bar fight. Get off me.
Everyone slides off FILO, and FILO turns back into a human. FILO cracks her knuckles and leaps across the street onto a different building. She looks over the crowd, and for a moment, an image of a pale crown flashes above her head. She puts four fingers into her mouth, and whistles.
The sound begins as loud and turns into an ear-shattering, deafening noise, drowning out everything up to your own thoughts, making windows shake and shatter all across the street. Wind whips around FILO, making the sound louder, and sending gusts of wind into the crowd below. MOB OF POGROMISTS down below screams, covering their ears, and NAOFUMI, CONSTANCE and MELTY do likewise. Gusts of wind topple most of the MOB OF POGROMISTS to the ground, while blowing errant pieces of debris and shards of glass far away from any people.
FILO takes her fingers out of her mouth and the whistle cuts off abruptly, sending the street into a deafening silence in the aftermath, letting her voice carry cleanly across the street.
FILO: SHUT. THE FUCK. UP. Lay down and stay down! First fucker who gets up without a direct order from either princess gets a rock put through their head!
FILO eyes the people on the street suspiciously. A POGROMIST down below attempts to get up, and she picks up a roofing tile and sends it flying just a hair above their head. The tile shatters into dust when it hits a wall of the opposite building, the noise of it as loud as a gunshot. POGROMIST drops to the ground, covering their head with their hands.
FILO: Did you think that was a fucking joke? Stay down!
FILO looks over the crowd. Nobody moves, and she nods in satisfaction, turning back towards MELTY, NAOFUMI and CONSTANCE, who all look at her in shock.
FILO: I'll go check out the other parts of town. You guys can explain to this lot what they should do.
NAOFUMI: I don't remember you being this strong.
PRINCESS FILO: Yeah well, I guess I am a princess now, innit, since I have a crown? Can't be weak, or Myne and Melty would make fun of me.
PRINCESS FILO salutes MELTY and flies off.
SCENE: Dining room in the castle. MELTY, NAOFUMI, MYNE are on one side of the table; INNKEEPER, CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD, and other IMPORTANT TOWNSPEOPLE sit on the other. CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD has his head in his hands. MYNE, still wearing her hat, is sitting in between NAOFUMI and MELTY, with NAOFUMI some distance away from the two. MELTY is standing up, leaning on the table with both hands.
The room is full of angry shouting, as all the IMPORTANT TOWNSPEOPLE try to be heard at once. MELTY looks furious. MYNE looks put upon for even being there. NAOFUMI looks merely resigned.
FILO walks into the room, squeezing water out of her long hair. She whistles once, and half of the IMPORTANT TOWNSPEOPLE in the room duck, looking at her in fear.
FILO: Why are you all so noisy? Didn't even get drunk first...
FILO nods to MELTY and NAOFUMI.
FILO: I swept the rest of the town, no one is fighting anymore. Dunno if they'll start without me there, but eh, I did my part. Now I'll go find some monsters to punch.
FILO flexes her muscles. MELTY slowly breathes out to calm herself down.
MELTY: Thank you Filo. We should handle it from here.
INNKEEPER's eye twitches as she sees FILO turn to leave.
INNKEEPER: Our count has been
murdered, and we demand
justice, yet this demihuman murderer is allowed to simply walk away again?
IMPORTANT TOWNSPEOPLE seem ready to start shouting again. FILO turns back and walks over to the INNKEEPER. When she is directly in her face, INNKEEPER finally blanches back. FILO has a confused look on her face.
FILO: You know, I am actually really dumb. Melty and Naofumi -
FILO nods to MELTY and NAOFUMI.
FILO: - talk all this stuff about justice and people and politics every other evening, and honestly, usually I just fall asleep. But I guess it's important to you guys, so that's why you are all shouting at each other?
FILO scratches her head.
FILO: Well, here's the thing. I now have this stupid bug in my head about stopping the Waves, and it tells me Naofumi and Melty should be out there doing stuff, training, whatever. But they aren't going to leave this village until you guys figure this whole thing out, so that means it's just going to keep bugging me. I hate it when things bug me.
FILO points towards the door.
FILO: So I am going to go back to the river, take another swim, and then go see if there are any strong monsters left alive to fight, because I
really want to punch something. While I am gone, you guys should all figure this whole thing out with Melty and Naofumi. They are really smart, they probably have some kind of great idea how you all will get along. If you don't… I'll have to start thinking of what to do, and I am pretty bad at it. You want me to try more?
Most people in the room cringe. FILO walks away. MELTY stands up to address everyone.
MELTY: Now that we are all
calm and ready for
dialogue, let me once again state why I allowed you to stand here in front of me to present your case. The plants have fallen, and your town is safer than ever before - yet your count has died -
INNKEEPER: Murdered!
MELTY:
Whatever happened to him will be determined
after an investigation, not before. I will personally conduct the autopsy of his body to determine the cause of death, and find those responsible -
whoever they are. Any one of you is welcome to supervise it. But the count lacked an heir. A new count will be assigned to your county in time, yet with the waves as they are, that may take months.
In the meantime, I need you to keep the rest of the people calm and avoid any new pogroms that will make me resort to
drastic measures.
MELTY motions with her head to MYNE and to the door FILO walked out of. MYNE has a grim, bored expression on her face, hints of fire dancing on one of her palms.
MELTY: This will be all. You are dismissed.
MELTY glares at the IMPORTANT TOWNSPEOPLE as they file out of the room.
SCENE: MELTY enters the castle kitchens from a back door. She is wearing a short-sleeved shirt exposing her arms that are covered in blood, and a long apron. NAOFUMI follows after her, dressed similarly. With a flick of her wrist, all the blood gathers into a small ball which she sends into the trash, and she takes off the apron. With a glance at NAOFUMI, she purses her lips, and grudgingly pulls the blood off him as well.
NAOFUMI: Thank you.
MELTY: I don't want you to spread it all over the castle.
MYNE enters the room after NAOFUMI, completely clean, wearing her usual clothes. MELTY quickly finds one of the CHEFS, orders some food to be brought up, and the three of them proceed into the rest of the castle, soon reaching a wide room with tables and documents, where CONSTANCE and RAPHTALIA are talking to each other. CONSTANCE turns to them as they enter the room. MYNE takes one of the chairs, and pours herself a glass of wine.
CONSTANCE: Did the autopsy reveal anything?
MELTY: Alcohol in his stomach, broken neck and ribs, no signs of a struggle, no sign of other drugs or poisons.
MELTY nods to NAOFUMI.
MELTY: Thanks for your assistance with the support spells.
CONSTANCE: He was found at the bottom of a staircase if I recall? It seems that he got drunk, slipped, and broke his neck.
MELTY snorts, crossing her arms, as she leans against one of the walls.
MELTY: Nonsense. The man wasn't an alcoholic, he knew how to hold his drink, and he had been living in this castle for years. The chances of him slipping up are close to none.
CONSTANCE: Perhaps his recent fiery experience with Myne changed that. I have heard that he hardly left his room afterwards.
MELTY: There wasn't enough alcohol for him to be
that drunk. It's much more likely he was poisoned with something that I simply couldn't detect - I have only a passing familiarity with criminological spells, and the locals are even worse.
CONSTANCE nods.
CONSTANCE: I concur with your analysis, if I am being honest. It's not unlikely some demihuman staged this.
MYNE raises her eyebrows in surprise. MELTY matches her expression. RAPHTALIA throws a strange glance at CONSTANCE.
MYNE: My, my, is that an admission that this entire plan with arming demihumans was a farce from the start?
CONSTANCE shrugs.
CONSTANCE: To find a murderer, you need means, motive and opportunity, correct? Every demihuman would have the motive, and no less of a means or opportunity than anyone else in town.
MYNE: Strange to hear one of the Shield's lapdogs admit this, but I will take it.
CONSTANCE raises an eyebrow.
CONSTANCE: Admit what? It's simple reasoning. It also has little bearing on the question at hand.
MYNE: The question of finding the murderer?
MELTY sighs.
MELTY: No, Fredalia is right. The real question is what we do about this.
MYNE turns to MELTY.
MYNE: What question is that? Make the demihumans give up the murderer, or else we will hang them all together.
RAPHTALIA puts her feet up on the table, taking a deliberately relaxed pose in her chair.
RAPHTALIA:
Make us give someone up? You and what army?
MYNE sneers at RAPHTALIA, fire dancing in her eyes.
MYNE: I don't
need an army, pup.
RAPHTALIA: Hey, I am always ready for a round two. What will you lose this time, I wonder? No more hair, so perhaps nails, or even teeth?
MELTY steps in between them with a scowl.
MELTY:
Enough. We've buried this, the both of you.
MELTY stares RAPHTALIA and MYNE down until they nod.
CONSTANCE: I take it you've questioned the witnesses?
MELTY: What few were in the castle at the time, yes. They saw nothing. By the time he was found, the corpse was already cold. I don't know how the rumor leaked into the town itself, but that it did.
CONSTANCE shrugs.
CONSTANCE: If the spells revealed no poison and the witnesses saw nothing, then you won't be
capable of finding the murderer, if indeed there was one. So the question is wherever to declare this an accident - or perhaps a strange form of suicide - or a murder with no guilty party. If you do the latter, it will justify the thirst for demihuman blood from those who organized the pogrom for no benefit. The correct answer seems clear to me.
MELTY purses her lips. MYNE looks between them, then shrugs.
MYNE: Have the animals slaughter the rest of the town for all I care. I told you this would happen when you said you would arm them, remember? Others would end up dead if you continue, Melty.
RAPHTALIA: I am sorry, why are we still discussing this dead prick? Fredalia already said what we should do - can we get back to talking about, say, how we should organize the cleanup of nearby territories?
MYNE: Are those ears on top of your head just for show? A
noble has been killed. This is incredibly important.
RAPHTALIA: Ding dong, a wicked slaver's dead, all the merrier. I'll make sure to throw a party later.
Twenty three demihumans died from the pogrom, that we have counted
so far. How is that not twenty three times more important?
MYNE opens her mouth to respond, but MELTY makes a cutting motion in her direction.
MELTY: Stop.
MELTY glances at RAPHTALIA, CONSTANCE and NAOFUMI.
MELTY: Leave us.
NAOFUMI: And if assassins come while we aren't here?
MELTY: Then my sister will protect me. Now go.
NAOFUMI shrugs, and CONSTANCE, NAOFUMI and RAPHTALIA leave the room. MELTY gives MYNE a long look, then takes a seat next to her.
MELTY: Myne, what is going on?
MYNE gives MELTY the same look, swirling the wine in her glass.
MYNE: Going on? What could be going on in this dump?
MELTY: Why are you trying to antagonize Raphtalia again?
MYNE looks at MELTY in bafflement.
MYNE:
I? Antagonize
her? Melty, what the hell are you talking about? The bitch threatened
me just now!
MELTY sighs.
MELTY: Myne, I know you are smarter than this. Why did you talk about hanging all the demihumans? You knew they would never agree to something like that, and you knew it would provoke a reaction. More than that, you know that I need them for the Waves, and so
I wouldn't agree to it either. So why did you say it? You know I am on your side, so please, just talk to me?
MYNE wrinkles her nose, exhales, and some tension leaves her shoulders.
MYNE: I just want to be done already, out of this backwater. Me and Motoyasu were thinking of leaving for the capital in the evening - hopefully we can still salvage some of our wedding plans.
MELTY: Myne, I need you here. I can't do this alone.
MYNE makes a wild motion with her wine glass, angling it so the wine doesn't spill from the movement.
MYNE: No you don't! All this - cleaning up the mess, figuring out who to put in charge - none of it is your responsibility! You are a princess acting on our mother's behalf, assign a count, and be done with it! Better yet - tell the marquis or duke to just do their damn jobs, make
them pick a count, and leave!
MELTY: You know I can't do that. There is no count in the country who would willingly take a position here - let alone be capable of handling it. Two, three days, and the situation should stabilize - but until then, if we leave, we'd be leaving a powder keg behind.
MYNE: I don't care! It's not our problem, Melty - there are hundreds of such backwaters all over the country. Are you going to involve yourself with every single one? Kiss every little peasant who scratched his knee on the wound to make it hurt less? We rule this country, but you are acting like a lowly baroness. You didn't even reprimand those morons for shouting in your presence, for the love of God.
MELTY: It's pointless to insist on decorum in a situation this tense - they already must think low of us after what we did to their count. If I pushed the issue, we might have gotten an outright rebellion on our hands.
MYNE: Great - if they do, execute them, and the next ones will learn better. Like I said, it's not
your problem that they forget themselves. We should already have cut the head off of that imbecile in charge of the guard for the sheer fucking insubordination of leading the pogrom.
MELTY: I probably will, once it's time to reveal the results of our investigation. There will need to be a scapegoat for what happened.
MYNE looks at MELTY and sighs.
MYNE: Well, at least you aren't going to go soft on him. Small mercies. You are still going to get yourself killed for associating with the Shield Hero and this demihuman nonsense, of course.
MELTY purses her lips.
MELTY: Myne, why do you say that? Everything I did in regards to Naofumi went about as well as I expected it to. He got us the soldiers we needed, and he saved your life by helping me kill one of the plant stalks.
MYNE: Really? Melty, they killed the count, and then a pogrom happened. It's exactly as bad as I predicted.
MELTY rubs her forehead.
MELTY: Myne, please. Yes, a demihuman probably killed the count, but I don't care about that moron - I would have replaced him after we were done here in any case. It wasn't "they" who did it, it was some singular demihuman exploiting an opportunity. It's no different from a human doing the same, over some personal grudge - you know as well as I do that nobles are not invulnerable. As for the pogrom, it didn't just "happen", it was started by the guards. Demihumans can't be blamed for it.
MYNE turns away.
MYNE: Sure, whatever you say.
MELTY: Myne, I am not trying to win an argument against you. But this is important to me. If Naofumi wanted to kill me, he had, frankly, ample opportunity to do so.
MYNE turns back to MELTY, hurt in her eyes.
MYNE: How can you side with him against your own sister?
MELTY purses her lips.
MELTY: Myne, you don't know what you are talking about.
MYNE: Don't I? You always defend him. I tell you that demihumans will ruin us, and then you arm them anyways - and sure, maybe it's only one who killed the count, but it's one that you armed and taught how to fight. Maybe the next one will go after me. That whore of his already did.
MELTY breathes out an irritated sigh.
MELTY: Myne, Naofumi, Raphtalia and Fredalia
all thought that you tried to assassinate me. I think they still do, even after meeting you. They also think you started this entire plant crisis. I can't begin to explain to you how hard it was to defend you against their accusations. As for Raphtalia, without me there, I think they would have all just killed you, Myne - you are strong, but you didn't see Filo in a fight. Just because I am not agreeing with you on everything doesn't mean I'm not on your side.
MYNE:
I started this crisis? What nonsense is this?
MELTY: Motoyasu told Raphtalia that you two found some kind of fruit that made plants grow stronger.
MYNE scowls.
MYNE: Melty, please, you can't possibly take that seriously. The density of mana -
MELTY: I know. I told them as much, a single fruit, no matter how magical, couldn't possibly cause this. More than that, I trust you - if you made a mistake, you would tell me. Like I said, I am on your side.
MYNE sips her wine again, then sighs.
MYNE: I am sorry for doubting you. It's just this…everything.
MELTY leans back in her chair.
MELTY: I know. I am stressed out of my mind too. But you could have been a bit more honest with me too.
MYNE: What?
MELTY reaches into her pocket and pulls out a symbol of the three-heroes church, with an eye on top - the one CONSTANCE gave her.
MELTY: I was afraid you'd think I was accusing you, so I didn't ask you before. Do you know this symbol?
MYNE's eyes narrow at the symbol.
MYNE: Where did you get this?
MELTY: Fredalia gave it to me. She said she could tell you recognised it.
MYNE: What possible relevance does this have with anything?
MELTY: Myne, please, just tell me. What is it?
MYNE sighs.
MYNE: There is not much to tell. It's a symbol of the Order of the Oculary Ordination, of which I am a member. It's one of those secret societies that pop up, supposedly to study theology, but actually to have the cream and crop of society come together for drinking and hunting. It's how I found count Merpet.
MYNE sips her wine.
MYNE: Admittedly, incredible drinking and hunting.
MELTY: You told Fredalia you didn't know what it was.
MYNE: Why would I tell one of Shield's whores
anything? Besides, it's supposed to be a
secret society, not telling the outsiders is part of the oaths. Not that they themselves keep to those oaths all that tightly - I overheard a couple members discussing the order before I joined.
MELTY: You could have told me about it, at least.
MYNE: But you never asked? Besides, what does it have to do with anything?
MELTY: Naofumi says that this symbol was actively involved in the release of that monster in Dornuromarc.
MYNE furrows her brow.
MYNE: The one from the estate of… Idoru something? I think he might have been a member too, yes, though I have never talked to him. The order helped me with my planned takeover, but he was too small of a fish to deal with me.
MELTY shakes her head.
MELTY: You misunderstand. It wasn't just at the scene, he says it was actively involved in the magic that brought forth the monster.
MYNE sits up straighter, narrowing her eyes.
MYNE: Then he lies.
MELTY: He is, frankly, terrible at lying. The worst of all his allies, really.
MYNE: Melty, the order doesn't deal in magic. It's just for socializing.
MELTY: He
also said that the symbol of the order was worn by a trio of assassins who tried to kill them in Malatok, after that duel he had with Motoyasu.
MYNE: Then he lies again? What of it?
MELTY: We could easily check this with the guards in Malatok. It would be a truly terrible lie to make.
MYNE pauses, thinking it over.
MYNE: I suppose it's
possible someone else from the order had ordered the assassination. It would be quite strange - there aren't that many members.
MELTY: But if the order was helping you with the coup, shouldn't you have heard of it? Killing a hero is a pretty big deal.
MYNE doesn't answer, frowning in thought.
MELTY: Why didn't you kill him yourself, Myne? After your pointless confrontation with him, I mean.
MYNE snorts.
MYNE: Melty, you should go to church more. He is the Shield Hero, being a bastard is in his core - he would betray us for sure, I just moved first. Besides, it made me closer to Motoyasu. But why would I kill him? I have listened to Mother as much as you did. More, even. The Waves need the four heroes, blah blah blah. As long as he wasn't in my way or anywhere near me I didn't care what he was doing.
MELTY: Did you tell this to people in the order?
MYNE: No. Why would I? It had nothing to do with them.
MELTY: So someone from the order, against your wishes, ordered an assassination of Naofumi? Presumably because they thought it would help you.
MYNE: I suppose so, yeah.
MELTY: Who do you think ordered my assassination?
MYNE brings her glass to her lips for a sip, but stops, and stares at MELTY.
MYNE: What?
MELTY: My assassination, in the capital.
MYNE: Are you saying someone
from the order did it? Ridiculous. I would have known -
MYNE pauses, frowning in thought.
MELTY: Yes, see, this is what got me thinking. We've already established you don't know everything that happens in the order. And we've established that it's possible they try to help you without you knowing. Given what you were doing, assassinating me might seem like it would help you take the crown, right? How long have you been in the order?
MYNE: Only a couple years.
MELTY: So it's possible you don't know everything there is to know about it?
MYNE: Sure. But not this, Melty. Killing you would be too big, you aren't some pesky Shield Hero. I
should have known if that was on the table.
MELTY: Perhaps, but perhaps not. If we add the order being involved with that monster to the table, and the fact that this crisis happened right when you were visiting another member of the order, I am starting to dislike the picture it paints.
MYNE: Melty, this is ridiculous. This plant crisis is clearly the same sort of magic that is behind the Waves - it's not made by human hands.
MELTY: True. It couldn't be a spell they cast - but perhaps they knew something about how to bring it into existence anyways? How did you and Motoyasu find that fruit?
MYNE shakes her head.
MYNE: It wasn't related to the order at all, Melty. We went adventuring into some nearby ruins and found it deep underground. It's not like it was growing in Merpet's backyard -
MYNE frowns again, and her lips form into a slight scowl. MELTY raises an eyebrow at her.
MELTY: What?
MYNE: He tried to dissuade us from going to the ruins. Said it's too dangerous, and then Motoyasu said we had to face the danger like honorable heroes. He does that sometimes, it's very cute. The ruins weren't even all that bad, though pretty well hidden - we wouldn't have found them without one of Motoyasu's abilities…
MYNE's scowl grows wider, animalistic.
MYNE: And then when I came to put the count in his place, that
little dickless fucker tried to bring up the order in his defense. Like it mattered. Like it wasn't
just a social club. Like it would stay my hand from killing him for
daring to suggest killing you.
MYNE's eyes fill with fury of a thousand suns and she leaps from her chair.
MYNE: I am going to
incinerate them, one after another. Who would
dare -
MYNE strolls towards the doors, and MELTY has to run to keep up with her pace.
MELTY: Myne, wait -
MYNE: I've waited long enough. I will get an explanation or I will get corpses. I am fine with either.
MYNE strolls out into a small courtyard in the middle of the castle, where MOTOYASU is talking to some guards.
MYNE: Motoyasu! Plans changed, we are going to Melromarc
right now. Send me to the castle, and then find the rest of our party.
MELTY scowls at MYNE.
MELTY: Myne,
I need your help! You can't just leave!
MYNE shrugs.
MYNE: I already told you - you don't. Just leave. I'll keep you safer by being in the capital.
MELTY: It can wait a couple days!
MYNE: Justice doesn't wait.
MYNE turns to MELTY with a slight smile. MOTOYASU approaches the two.
MYNE: I am sorry for doubting you, so I have to repay you somehow, don't I? I will be back soon, and then you would be safe enough to ditch that Shield Hero of yours.
MELTY: Myne, you promised you wouldn't do this again!
I need my sister here, Myne!
MELTY grabs MYNE by the shoulder. MYNE bats her hand aside, hurt in her eyes.
MYNE: You really sound just like Mother.
MELTY steps back in shock. MYNE turns to MOTOYASU.
MYNE: Let's go.
MELTY turns to MOTOYASU.
MELTY: Motoyasu, don't you dare -
MOTOYASU shrugs slightly.
MOTOYASU: Sorry Melty, but she is going to be my wife. Her words come first.
MOTOYASU and MYNE dissolve into light. MELTY clutches her hands into fists.
MELTY: God
damn you, Myne!
MELTY glares at the GUARDS in the courtyard, who quickly pretend they were far too busy to hear anything. She heads back inside, looks through the many rooms of the castle, and soon finds NAOFUMI, CONSTANCE and RAPHTALIA resting in one of the bedrooms.
NAOFUMI: Talk didn't go well?
MELTY: Myne is off to the capital with Motoyasu.
Hopefully she won't burn down half the city. If we teleported there right now, how fast can you get me there?
NAOFUMI: A couple minutes to run outside, another minute for teleportation. Did she tell you exactly where she was going?
MELTY: To the castle.
NAOFUMI: The castle is pretty large, we'd need to spend time to find them. And if they teleported again after that, then they could be literally anywhere. I doubt we could catch them.
MELTY closes her eyes, and slams her fist on the edge of the door.
MELTY: Damn it. Why can't
anything go right for once?
CONSTANCE: You know you can rely on us to help you, right? You don't have to deal with everything on your own.
MELTY glares at CONSTANCE.
MELTY: Can I? Can I really? Can either of you explain why Fulana is dead, or why the count is dead? Because fuck me sideways if you aren't the top suspects on the list, not that I could tell Myne about it!
RAPHTALIA seems unnerved by the outburst. CONSTANCE sighs.
CONSTANCE: Melty, if we wanted to kill the count, we would have told you as much. In fact, I think if we presented a good case why it was necessary, you would have sanctioned it - and we wouldn't have done it without a good case. What
possible motive is there for us to kill him
without telling you?
MELTY keeps staring at her without responding.
CONSTANCE: Yes, we absolutely had the means - like you said, there are poisons your spell repertoire can't screen for. We had no way of knowing which spells you had, but it's possible we would have decided to risk it, and we could have brought the poison with us. We had the opportunity to poison his wine - if I was going to poison the count, that's how I would do it, because he always drinks the same wine in the morning. But we had zero motive. In fact, out of the entire town
including the count himself, we had the least motive to kill him without your knowledge. Do you disagree?
MELTY breathes in deeply.
MELTY: Not as such, no.
CONSTANCE: As for Fulana, she slipped and fell into the vines. It was an accident that sadly happens even to the most skilled of us. You saw the body. Filo brought you to the scene of the accident. You did the autopsy yourself - did that reveal something that wasn't already obvious on the surface? None of us could have killed her - at the time of death, we were with you, while Raphtalia was with Motoyasu and his party, none of whom would have any reason to lie. In fact, most of them are racist to a frustrating degree, so they have plenty of reasons to get her in trouble - but she stayed with their party. And, once again, we had no motive - we are
on your side, why would we kill one of your other allies? If we were going to move against you, then surely we would have killed you both at the same time? What
possible reason is there to deprive you of a shadow for what, a couple days it would take us to get you to the capital where you would just get another one?
MELTY: I don't immediately see one.
CONSTANCE: Then why do you suddenly distrust us?
MELTY: Because you lied to me again. He -
MELTY points to NAOFUMI.
MELTY: - called you Constance when you got hit by that tentacle. Who is Constance?
The room is tense for a moment, before CONSTANCE sighs and removes her mask, looking at MELTY with her open face.
CONSTANCE: My name is countess Constance von Marukievich, here under a pseudonym. My county is in Dornuromarc, and I would face significant troubles if it became known that I associate with the Shield Hero, let alone that I support the abolition of slavery. My reasons for doing that are quite personal, and I would ask you not to pry - though if you push, I suppose I could tell you.
MELTY: Uh huh. And why did you not tell me this before?
CONSTANCE: Because you can't leak a secret you do not know. If you, say, happened to misspeak my name in public, especially in a time of stress -
CONSTANCE throws a dirty glare at NAOFUMI. NAOFUMI looks guilty.
CONSTANCE: - then someone perceptive, such as
yourself, would know that much more about me. If they guessed I was a noble, and knew a bit about Naofumi's movements, they could probably figure out exactly who I was. Since my identity was not germane to anything, this was my primary reason for keeping quiet - though I admit a degree of fear had also contributed.
MELTY: Fear - you people can kill me at any moment! I am the one who is afraid here!
CONSTANCE: That much is true, but you can also seriously mess with us. Have you not already threatened Raphtalia with revealing who Naofumi is to the world?
MELTY looks between them, and some tension leaves her shoulders. She sighs.
MELTY: Fine, okay. I am
a bit sorry for doing that, so I guess I can't be too harsh on you for concealing your identity. Maybe you didn't kill Fulana, though her death still seems incredibly suspicious to me.
MELTY leans against a wall, closing her eyes, and rubbing her forehead.
MELTY: I am so tired. Myne left, and we still have to figure out what to do with this town. I don't know where to even
start. Where am I supposed to find a count who'd be willing to handle a town like this? I don't suppose you'd be up for it, …Constance?
CONSTANCE: I am afraid not.
NAOFUMI: You know, it's almost like a political system that assigns rulers from top down is going to be fundamentally inflexible and incapable of properly representing the desires and frustrations of a population, especially if it happens to be decapitated in a crisis. Who would have thought.
MELTY's eyes snap open and she glares at NAOFUMI. NAOFUMI gives her a little smile in return.
MELTY: You know what? Fuck it, you asshole. You want to run your crazy mob rule experiment? Let's do it, it can't get any worse than this mess. What did you call it?
NAOFUMI: Democracy?
MELTY: Sure, whatever, I do not care. This will be the first democratically elected count in Melromarc, possibly the entire world.
MELTY strolls out of the doors, turning back in the doorframe.
MELTY: And when it all goes to shit, I will enjoy rubbing your face in the rubble.
NAOFUMI IWATANI, THE SHIELD HERO. One of the socialists. Amateur criminological assistant. Actively annoying monarchs.
KITAMURA MOTOYASU, THE SPEAR HERO. Autonomous teleportation platform.
PRINCESS MELTY Q. MELROMAC. First heir to the throne of Melromarc. Infuriated democracy builder.
PRINCESS MYNE Q. MELROMARC. Second heir to the throne of Melromarc. Away to commit murderous arson.
RAPHTALIA. One of the socialists. Ready for round two.
CONSTANCE VON MARUKIEVICH / FREDALIA. Secretly demihuman. Faked own death. Lying like she breathes.
FILO. One woman riot squad. Princess in training.
INNKEEPER. Still racist. Guardian of the tavern.
leftist fanfic of a light novel that probably popularized the recent rash of pro-slavery Isekai/Isekai-adjacent works? Yeah, that honestly checks out.
